He was shocked to discover he did not need council consent and could
even build the turbine up to 10m high if he wanted to.

“I was very surprised because I paid all the (development) fees and I
got it all back,” Mr Evangelista said.

“I’m trying to be self-supporting,” he said.

Burnside Council sought legal advice on the issue.

It revealed that under the Development Act, wind turbines are classed
the same as windmills and do not require council approval if they are
under 10m-high.

Wind turbines up to 4m-high can also be put on top of buildings
without approval.

Burnside chief executive Paul Deb said the council had received three
inquiries about wind turbines in the past three years but only one
development application.

He said the council had no position on whether planning laws needed to
be updated to better regulate suburban wind turbines.
Wattle Park man’s development application shows 10m-high wind turbines
are allowed in Adelaide’s suburbs